Not sure this is a "distribution center" play as much as it is a play to get into the retail game. The first series of "smart" grocery stores, etc?
Austin no longer has any Fortune 500 companies. Dell should get back on the list after going public again after becoming private for a few years. Still, pretty sad. The city is never going to get a pro sports team with the lack of corporate HQs.
That, cannibalizing radio revenues with Big 12/SEC and two other pro-markets, and not wanting to shell $500 million - $1 billion in county money for a stadium that the team gets all the revenues and concessions for, even on non-sporting events the entire off-season.
The logical next step for Amazon is to acquire Instacart, which has become a viable delivery service after an exclusive partnership with Whole Foods. It's the last mile in the logistics of fresh produce delivery. Instacart already has the infrastructure in place to bridge the warehouse-to-store-to-customer chain. This is the one area where Amazon has struggled - reaching the endpoint in the supply chain. This move would play into Amazon's strengths by taking an established delivery system and connecting it to Amazon's distribution pipeline to funnel whatever Amazon wants to sell.
Amazon paying $13.7 billion for Whole Foods caused the total market cap of competitor grocers to fall by $32 billion. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...ds-competitors-lose-32-billion-in-value-chart
Is this going to be reality? I know they have a single retail location in Seattle for testing, does this mean Amazon is going to push this nationwide now?
The future of smart grocery shopping is already a reality. No joke, but it's at Sam's. If you download their Scan and Go app, you just scan your items on your phone and pay for it via the app with one click. (I registered my credit card on the app previously). You don't even have to stand in line or anything. You literally just walk out. The guy at the door just scans your receipt on your phone and you're done. It is now faster for me to stop at Sam's for a single item (mostly vegetables, fruits, bakery, cheeses, or drinks) than to go to an actual grocery store. I was in and out of a Sam's the other day buying a bunch of bananas in less than 4 minutes. I didn't have to speak to anyone or stand in any sort of line or pull out my wallet. I have Costco membership, but don't even shop there anymore due to ease of access of Sam's experience.
sounds good, but Amazon is taking it to the next level. And I'm pretty sure you can walk in, fill your grocery cart , and walk straight out without talking to anyone or scanning anything. I swear, Amazon is taking over the world. What's scary is OK yeah they're probably hiring people and that's what companies like Amazon do when they know people are scared of them. Once they feel theyve taken over everything they wanted there will be massive "layoffs" and no one will say **** to them because of how many employees they have. apple already doesnt pay taxes. Love Amazon now, hate them when they take over and you're out of a job. those clerks at whole foods are next. if they do this, I will be sure never to enter a whole foods again. I am against machines replacing employees.
trust me, there are many people just like me who from the moment they see a big company replaces employees with machines never enter that establishment again. most big businesses are aware of this and that's why many just won't do it or are hesitating. right now, everyone's watching Amazon. too much technology really can't be a bad thing. I wish the majority of my adulthood took place in the 80s, 90s and early 2000's.
Yeah, people will lose their jobs, but when has that ever stopped technological progress and advancement? This is why basic income needs to be implemented when automation starts massacring the job market and people get displaced.
it will probably be implemented...still its sad that land of opportunity will be something only said in history books. and while you cant fight it, people will try to resist it.
Thats what humans do. They do what's most convenient for them until that convenience costs them their livelihood. Then they look for someone to blame.
I shopped at Whole Foods back when it was the original groovy little store on North Lamar largely run by a bunch of hippies. Some of those early employees and "co-owners" are millionaires today, soon to be wealthier. I hope things don't change drastically. The most positive change would be lower prices. Whole Foods has been too expensive for years. We shop there anyway, but not as much as we once did.
It's both I would assume. The Whole Food stores serve both as a retail store and as a delivery point for groceries to households in areas with higher incomes.
The land of opportunity for some and the land of cyclical poverty for many. People at the point of displacement would be most affected as basic income is going to be a debate for decades, so for those people its going to be incredibly unfortunate.
I have a large chunk of my IRA account in Whole Foods stock. Too bad I bought a few years ago at the exact same price Amazon offered ($42/share). On the bright side, at least my position isn't down 30% anymore.
